"We Care"

Occasionally at work I get the mail.  When the weather is ideal, or I simply need to get away from my desk.  Yesterday I'm glad I did.  Upon bringing a giant stack of mail inside and sorting it into three logical piles - 1. things I'll open and put away, 2. things I'll open but let my boss actually take care of (I like to use the letter opener that's why I open his things!), and 3. junk.  Upon sorting I stumbled upon what I considered an amusing surprise...

The amusing surprise was a letter from the good old United States Postal Service. The USPS definitely caught my attention.

The USPS has seen their share of letters, and while I pulled the ripped, battled, and worn Purchase Order out of this little bag, I stopped to see what it was the USPS cared about...

My favorite lines, with commentary of course:  

"We hope this incident did not inconvenience you."  No of course not, I really didn't want that picture from my long lost cousin in Africa that is the last known artifact to exist for my family.

"Although every effort is made to prevent damage to the mail, occasionally this will occur because of the great volume handled and the rapid processing methods which must be employed to assure the most expeditious distribution possible." So we're shooting for efficiency and quantity, not quality?  OK, I mean that's acceptable in most professions right?  Here in America we just want to be fast!

"We hope you understand." That you're fast?  That you really do "care"... why of course I understand...  I just can't understand what my long-lost cousin is trying to tell me.  That part of the letter is well... you care that's all that matters.

Finally the letter was pleasantly closed with :

What really can you say?  They said please and they're sorry!



In all honesty though, the Purchase Order that was damaged was not too bad, (the fact that it was mailed out in mid-December made me give a second thought to their speediness), but all in all, no harm-no foul.  However, I did stop and think of these few key points displayed through the simple letter the USPS wrote:

1.) Why can't it always be this simple with work?  Ya boss I wasn't able to get that presentation done for the client, but I'm sorry, just tell them I am, I'm sure they'll accept!
2.)  Why is this somehow acceptable for the USPS when it's not in the real world!?  Only obvious answer I could come up with is what can they really do to fix it.  Offer you some free stamps?
3.)  Possibly the biggest issue here is why is "the most expeditious distribution possible" more important than good quality work?  And if this is acceptable within a government agency and they'll tell you flat out on their "opps" letter, why doesn't any one care!

I saw a mail room in the movie Elf.  I know they're crazy and hectic (movies don't lie)... Buddy didn't really think it was all it was cracked up to be, but good quality work is important no matter what.  Or at least that's what I believe.



Sidenote/Disclaimer:  I really do love getting mail.  It's like a mini-Christmas 6 days of the week! :)   Even when at work and it is never mine.  Getting the mail is so unpredictable and exciting.  Sometimes you are waiting for something to show up, and sometimes things come unexpected!  Maybe it's one of my kid-like characteristics, but getting the mail (even since I've grown and receive primarily bills and credit card applications) is still exciting to me!  I won't hold this one instance against my mail lady!

Endorsements

Endorsements have always been something of interest to me.  In the business world it can look encouraging to have a celebrity endorsement, or widespread support from a favorable organization, for your brand, product or organization.  Example, Brett Michaels and the American Diabetes Association.  While Michaels can be considered a controversial endorser, he has the name recognition and thus the ADA receives more attention from Michaels supporters. 

Endorsements are everywhere with athletes.  Tiger Woods in December 2009 was reported to earn more than $100 million annually in endorsements... even in the midst of his scandal. (1) But are we more likely to drink Gatorade because Tiger does?  Perhaps.

The most common endorsements, that arguably hold the most significant value, are political.  As election day rolls around every year, well-respected politicians and figureheads everywhere publicly announce who they support.

This entire endorsements topic is a complex. When did we lose the ability to decide for ourselves what and who we like?  Are we too lazy?  Are we trusting the right people?  I'll let you ponder those questions and delve into that on a rainy day!

There really is a reason for the endorsements issue coming up today!  It all stems from a Cory Giger post on the Altoona Mirror website today.  Being a Penn Stater forever, Tom Bradley being a top candidate to take over Pitt football is a topic of interest.  Giger writes:

If media and public opinion were the decisive factors, Bradley would seem to be a shoo-in. Both Ron Cook and Bob Smizik of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette have columns today endorsing Bradley for the job.

Both Neil Rudel and I already have given our endorsements to Bradley, who has done a wonderful job in his 30-plus years at Penn State and deserves a chance to run his own program.

What if media and public opinion were the decisive factors?   While I would argue that a handful of journalists endorsing a football coach candidate isn't going to be the deciding factor, I'd also argue it isn't going unnoticed.  Joe Pa is a great example of why it shouldn't go unnoticed.  He's a figure head and a great coach.  He alone can draw a crowd to any event.  Bradley, if the public likes and respects him as much as it appears, can serve in a similar role.  (disclaimer:  I don't know that anyone will ever reach the caliber of Joe but the concept still applies.)  Coaches have to be good at what they do... coaching and winning.  But they also need to be good with the public, with the media.  They need to be likable, or at the very least entertaining to follow.

Endorsements are interesting.  To really evaluate what influence they have on peoples decisions to use a product, vote for a person, hire someone, is surely a phenom being studied somewhere.  (Or at least I hope so) So for now, make your own decisions, or don't.  It doesn't always matter, someone is probably endorsing it anyway... leave the decision making up to them, they know what they're talking about... right?




1. http://abcnews.go.com/Business/tiger-woods-make-millions-big-endorsement-deals-nike/story?id=9228758

12 percent

I'm oddly superstitious in certain instances.  I don't carry a rabbits foot, or own a lucky penny, but come to hockey playoffs I wear the same jersey or t-shirt until the PENS lose, and on New Year's day I always have my bite of sauerkraut.  Along with superstitions or common reoccurring things we do on New Year's, comes New Year's resolutions.  According to infoplease.com "It is believed that the Babylonians were the first to make New Year's resolutions, and people all over the world have been breaking them ever since. (1) "  Not that I'm claiming this is where they originated, but my brief research found that New Year's resolutions have been around for a long time.  
 
A study discussed on Quirkology.com tracked people who set New Year's resolutions in 2007.  They found that "52% of participants were confident of success. One year later, only 12% actually achieved their goal. (2)"  Not the greatest statistic.  The study found that men actually achieved their goals more often then women.  It also reveals reasons why some are more successful then others.  I encourage you to check out the article if you're a New Year's Resolution setter, but here's the basic points they make:
 
1.Make Only One Resolution 
2. Plan ahead 
3. Avoid previous resolutions 
4. Be specific

For Men: Set S.M.A.R.T goals and Carrot not stick
For Women: Go public and Be persistent
 
In the past I've set some New Year's resolutions and I can't even recall what they were.  I was of the greater majority that didn't achieve my goal of working out more last year!  I lasted about a month or so at going to the gym!  This year though, I plan to be in that 12%.  I'm confident I will be for a few reasons.  First and foremost I don't consider my resolutions to be that, instead I'm calling them goals.  Goals to me sound more definite and concrete.  So without further delay, I'll take the recommended point of going public with your resolutions and reveal what I WILL accomplish in 2011.
 
1.  Run a half-marathon.  This is a big one since I've only ever run 5k's.  I'm thinking this topic will be something that comes up in the coming year in this blog!
2.  Try new things. While this is very broad, I've already identified specifics, but am keeping it broad to encompass both professional and personal me.  One example is I intend to try new foods.  I'm a VERY picky eater... the problem with that statement is I haven't tried a lot of foods, I just don't like the thought of trying them!  This will change in 2011.
3. Be better at everything.  Again, very broad, but I have the specifics!  Personally I intend to work on my patiences.  I've already got a jump start on this since my niece received Lego's from Santa!  I never had Lego's as a kid... there was a reason why!  Professionally one thing I plan to work on is being concise.  
4. Find luck. ... no comments really necessary right?!
 
I wish everyone a happy and successful 2011, and may the year be always improving and better than 2010!
 
*Random hockey side note: I tried to abbreviate New Year's resolution as NYR so I wouldn't have to write it out so many times and all I could think when I read each sentence was New York Rangers.


1. http://www.infoplease.com/spot/newyearcelebrations.html#ixzz19p07Y4bt
2. http://www.quirkology.com/UK/Experiment_resolution.shtml

I might need crayons for this.

Kids are smart.  They tend to keep things simple and I like it.  This all began a few days ago when I was at my sisters house discussing a business card I was creating.  The discussion focused on  whether the logo should be moved.  My thoughts were that perhaps there was too much white space, or possibly it was just enough.  After a couple minutes of discussion between my sister and I, my 6-year-old niece offered the perfect solution... we could color it!  At that precise moment my heart melted and I handed all of my business cards to her to color.  The solution of course for me wasn't that easy... but in her mind it made sense.

Today another, what I'll refer to as "youthful," event occurred.  I received a card from a secret admirer!  While in all reality I nailed down who it was from within 2-seconds of opening the card, the simplicity of sending/giving a secret admirer card is delightful.  Made me think back to the elementary school days when you liked someone you simply wrote them a note, they circled yes or no, and you moved on.  Looking at that now, the solution doesn't seem that easy... but in your mind at that age it made sense.

So all in all, this could be a homeage to a child's way of thinking, or perhaps a foreshadowing of what sort of New Years resolution I should make... Here's to keeping things simple... coloring and asking people exactly what you want to know.  I might need to find my crayons for this.

-M